Hello folks,
After a couple $270 power bills over the winter to keep my ALL electric house warm, I installed a wood burning stove (my second one) and decided to build my own solar system. My only requirements were to not touch the existing on-the-grid house wiring so I can "call" it a back up, emergency system. Especially since my power has went off over a dozen times in the last year (long story). I wanted to be able to plug in a few extension cords and power up my "usual 110V stuff" like the swamp cooler, fridge, space heaters, washer, tv, internet, light, coffee pot, microwave, etc and my 220V stove and dryer when the power shuts off regularly. I also wanted to be able to track the sun east to west and the north to south azimuth somehow to get the maximum out of my panels. The two month build by myself was ever changing as I came across deals on the parts and learning just enough knowledge to be dangerous. After my Frank Sinatra I DID IT MY WAY, I've ended up with two separate, pieced together, off-the-grid systems.
System #1 is finished and online 24/7: 450W from 9 (3 new, 6 used) Grape poly 12V/50W RV panels in parallel, three Grape 10A PWM CCs on battery 1, 4, and 8, eight 29DC 12V batteries in parallel and a 1500/3000W 12V to 110V modified sine wave car type inverter on battery number 4.
System #2 is still a work in progress but I have all the parts now finally: 1860w from 6 used REC 36v/310w poly panels in parallel, one (so far) 36V/60A MPPT CC, 12 29DC 12V batteries in sets of three in series all joining in parallel at the inverter, and a 1500/3000W 36V to 220V pure sine wave Reliable inverter.
I'm still working out the tracking system. The panels frame is mounted on three posts and pivots for east west tracking and the posts can be moved up and down for the north south azimuth. For now, I'm manually tilting and locking down the panels 3 times a day. The goal is to set up a non-electric, ancient gravity/hydraulic tilting system that I can set in motion once every morning in 5 minutes and forget it. Or just leave it locked down flat when I wont be home.
The 110V system powers up most of my "usual 110V stuff" that are within a few feet of each other. The 220V system is going to power up the stove and dryer one at a time hopefully. And, I'm splitting off a 110V from it to run the finicky microwave with pure sine wave and the swamp cooler because of it's remote location. Cant wait to have that system up and running this week with a little luck and good weather.
My TV let's me know, long before the 110V inverter builtin warning does, that my batteries are getting low because the TV shuts off when the fridge kicks on. When that happens, I just swap one 6-way 110V plug and I'm back on the grid.
I stayed within my arbitrary budget of $3000 and ended up with 2.31KW, hoping to say goodbye to the power company 90% of the time. The 20 new batteries alone were 2 grand with tax after giving Walmart and Pep Boys (Price matched Walmart) 20 old battery cores I already had in old cars and trucks out back. I have a lot of junk. I bought good used panels wherever possible. I built the frame out of old scrap I had laying around out back on my two acres, including using two old aluminum sail boat masts for the frame's backbones. I stole car battery cables and made my own battery cables out of several old jumper cable sets double, tripled and quadrupled up and 100A aluminum supply wire that I had left over from when I handbuilt my house over 30 years ago. I'm old.
My only regret is that I didn't do this 30 years ago. Better late than never.
I'm also I may try to build two wind generators out of old ceiling fans I have, since it so damn windy out here.
Now I'm gonna read all your posts over the summer and realize all the things I did wrong. Several of my so-called friends have conned me into building solar systems for them. I guess I better learn how to do it right, for them.
James
After a couple $270 power bills over the winter to keep my ALL electric house warm, I installed a wood burning stove (my second one) and decided to build my own solar system. My only requirements were to not touch the existing on-the-grid house wiring so I can "call" it a back up, emergency system. Especially since my power has went off over a dozen times in the last year (long story). I wanted to be able to plug in a few extension cords and power up my "usual 110V stuff" like the swamp cooler, fridge, space heaters, washer, tv, internet, light, coffee pot, microwave, etc and my 220V stove and dryer when the power shuts off regularly. I also wanted to be able to track the sun east to west and the north to south azimuth somehow to get the maximum out of my panels. The two month build by myself was ever changing as I came across deals on the parts and learning just enough knowledge to be dangerous. After my Frank Sinatra I DID IT MY WAY, I've ended up with two separate, pieced together, off-the-grid systems.
System #1 is finished and online 24/7: 450W from 9 (3 new, 6 used) Grape poly 12V/50W RV panels in parallel, three Grape 10A PWM CCs on battery 1, 4, and 8, eight 29DC 12V batteries in parallel and a 1500/3000W 12V to 110V modified sine wave car type inverter on battery number 4.
System #2 is still a work in progress but I have all the parts now finally: 1860w from 6 used REC 36v/310w poly panels in parallel, one (so far) 36V/60A MPPT CC, 12 29DC 12V batteries in sets of three in series all joining in parallel at the inverter, and a 1500/3000W 36V to 220V pure sine wave Reliable inverter.
I'm still working out the tracking system. The panels frame is mounted on three posts and pivots for east west tracking and the posts can be moved up and down for the north south azimuth. For now, I'm manually tilting and locking down the panels 3 times a day. The goal is to set up a non-electric, ancient gravity/hydraulic tilting system that I can set in motion once every morning in 5 minutes and forget it. Or just leave it locked down flat when I wont be home.
The 110V system powers up most of my "usual 110V stuff" that are within a few feet of each other. The 220V system is going to power up the stove and dryer one at a time hopefully. And, I'm splitting off a 110V from it to run the finicky microwave with pure sine wave and the swamp cooler because of it's remote location. Cant wait to have that system up and running this week with a little luck and good weather.
My TV let's me know, long before the 110V inverter builtin warning does, that my batteries are getting low because the TV shuts off when the fridge kicks on. When that happens, I just swap one 6-way 110V plug and I'm back on the grid.
I stayed within my arbitrary budget of $3000 and ended up with 2.31KW, hoping to say goodbye to the power company 90% of the time. The 20 new batteries alone were 2 grand with tax after giving Walmart and Pep Boys (Price matched Walmart) 20 old battery cores I already had in old cars and trucks out back. I have a lot of junk. I bought good used panels wherever possible. I built the frame out of old scrap I had laying around out back on my two acres, including using two old aluminum sail boat masts for the frame's backbones. I stole car battery cables and made my own battery cables out of several old jumper cable sets double, tripled and quadrupled up and 100A aluminum supply wire that I had left over from when I handbuilt my house over 30 years ago. I'm old.
My only regret is that I didn't do this 30 years ago. Better late than never.
I'm also I may try to build two wind generators out of old ceiling fans I have, since it so damn windy out here.
Now I'm gonna read all your posts over the summer and realize all the things I did wrong. Several of my so-called friends have conned me into building solar systems for them. I guess I better learn how to do it right, for them.
James
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